New faces joining Ohio Supreme Court

By MARC KOVACDix Capital Bureau Published: November 7, 2012 4:00 AM

COLUMBUS -- Two incumbent Ohio Supreme Court justices were unseated Monday night, though the political makeup of the state's high court will remain the same.

Both Robert Cupp and Yvette McGee Brown were behind in initial returns posted by the secretary of state's office late Tuesday.

Cupp, a Republican seeking a second term, fell to Bill O'Neill, a Democrat and former appeals court judge who has run for the Ohio Supreme Court and Congress in recent elections, according to the unofficial results.

McGee Brown, a Democrat who was appointed in the final days of Gov. Ted Strickland's term, lost to Sharon Kennedy, a common pleas judge from Butler County.

The lone incumbent to retain his seat was Justice Terrence O'Donnell, a Republican who cruised back to the bench over Democratic state Sen. Mike Skindell.

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"I cannot tell you what a privilege it is to serve as an elected justice of the Ohio Supreme Court," O'Donnell told a cheering crowd at the Ohio Republican Party's election night gathering near the Statehouse. "But let me assure you, that in a 32-year judicial career, I have dedicated myself to the law. I have dedicated my career to public service. ... I belong to Ohio."

The results are unofficial and don't include some absentee ballots mailed in before Election Day and provisional ballots cast on Tuesday by voters with questions about their eligibility. Final counts will be completed later in the month.

Kennedy, the lone Supreme Court candidate to receive a "not recommended" rating from the Ohio Bar Association, topped McGee Brown for an unfinished term on the court. She'll have to run for re-election in two years.

Marc Kovac is the Dix Capital Bureau Chief. Email him at mkovac@dixcom.com or on Twitter at OhioCapitalBlog.